American tourists stranded on a desert island in Yemen
American tourists stranded on a desert island in Yemen known as Socotra between the Gulf of Aden, the Guardafui Channel and the Arabian Sea
Travel has been disrupted by simmering tensions between warring Yemeni parties and their supporters, leaving scores of foreign Tourists seeking adventure trapped on a secluded island in the Indian Ocean.
According to European and American visitors this state of emergency has resulted in the closure of all ports of entry to Yemeni island of Socotra, which is situated between the Arabian Sea, the Guardafui Channel, and the Gulf of Aden.
The island, which is a designated UNESCO World Heritage Site and is well-known for its distinctive biodiversity.
It has grown to be a regional destination for adventure travelers, particularly foreigners who travel there from the neigh-boring United Arab Emirates.
Expect to witness breathtaking cliffs, immaculate beaches with white sand, and unusual plants like the dragon’s blood tree.
Socotra has been protected from the worst of Yemen’s protracted conflict by its distance from the mainland.
However, regional tensions have now affected a shipment linked to the United Arab Emirates in Yemen, which resulted in Saudi bombings last week.
“The US government is unable to provide emergency or routine consular services to US citizens in Yemen, including Socotra Paradise,” the State Department said, advising against any travel to Yemen.
Yemen’s Socotra island is explored by tourists
Yemen’s Socotra island is explored by tourists. Thanks to Gerrit van Wijngaarden, “There are hundreds of them.”
Tourists are physically safe, but they don’t know when they might be able to go back home.
The American visitor said, “There are a lot of tourists,” and mentioned that his group had begun corresponding with other camp sites nearby.
There are a variety of Westerners present. They number in the hundreds.
At least 14 passengers are stranded in Socotra, according to Rocky Road Travel.
It is a Berlin-based travel business that has requested help from several European missions in Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates, as well as US embassies in Riyadh and Abu Dhabi.
Embassies unable to help
Many flights arrived, but none are departing at this time.
Embassies “unfortunately cannot do anything because they don’t have any offices in Yemen.
Up to 100 Polish visitors are on the island, according to Van Wijngaarden. CNN has yet to receive a response from the Polish embassy in Saudi Arabia, which deals with the issues raised by Polish nationals in Yemen.
Van Wijngaarden stated that he has not made any plans to travel by boat and that some tourists have been encouraged to use commercial ships from the island to Oman and then fly back to Europe or the US due to airline disruptions.
Although the UAE has subsequently declared that it will remove its troops from Yemen, the situation is still unstable, particularly in light of the STC’s announcement that it will hold an independence referendum in two years in order to “exercise the right of self-determination for the Southern people.” The island of Socotra would fall under this category.
Although the exact time, flights are anticipated to resume this week. Many tourists are currently waiting to go home.
They claim that there is no shortage of food or other supplies, yet the situation is nonetheless annoying. Van Wijngaarden stated, “We hope that somebody is doing something.”
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